Fly Away
by Cherylann Rivers
Summary: What happens when Callie Shaw starts receiving a series of strange messages around the Christmas season? It's up to Frank and Joe Hardy to step in and try to solve the mystery before it's too late.
1. Chapter 1

**Note:** _I had almost forgotten about this story that I wrote for a contest on the HDA way back in 2002! I believe the criteria simply stated that it had to be 1-10 chapters and it had to involve a bell in some way. It was fun to come across it in my files, and it is completely independent of any other story or series I have written. While it is by no means my greatest work, as I hope I have come a long way as a writer since then, I decided to publish it here while I am waiting for muses to speak to me to inspire another Hardy story. And since it happens to be a Christmas story (9 chapters long), I'll be posting every 2-3 days or so. Thanks so much in advance for reading, favoriting, and/or commenting. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!_

 **Fly Away**

 **Chapter 1**

 **December 20**

"Come on, Callie—cheer up." Eighteen-year-old Joe Hardy flashed his blue eyes at his brother's girlfriend, Callie Shaw. Not having anywhere else to go, Joe had decided to see if he could track down his brother's whereabouts. He had already checked at the mall, the pizza place, and the local computer shop, where his older brother, Frank, could almost certainly be found. Not having yet located him, Joe had decided to stop at Callie's house, the only other location where he thought Frank would probably be. Since both Frank and Callie were home from college on break, they were almost always together. Now, however, it didn't seem to be the case.

What he found when he arrived at Callie's house was Callie, sitting in her living room alone. A frown covered her pretty face, and she seemed seriously concerned about something. Deciding to kill some time, and worried about her state of mind, Joe tried to see if he could help her out. After all, Callie and Frank had been together so long that she was practically like a sister to him.

Deciding to speak up, he asked, "You okay? You seem a little off."

With a sigh, Callie managed a small smile and pushed her golden-blonde hair behind her ears. Looking up at Joe, she said, "I'm fine, Joe. Really. Thanks for your concern, though. It's nice to know I'm loved."

With a wink, Joe laughed. "Well, let's not get carried away there," he added with a laugh.

When Callie didn't return the smile, Joe turned serious as well. "Come on, Callie. I was just teasing. What's the matter? You seem kind of sad, and I want to see if I can help you."

"Don't you have to go and buy Vanessa a Christmas gift or something?" Callie asked, referring to Joe's girlfriend of about a year. "We both know you're not one to do anything in advance, and if you don't want her to kill you—I'd get on it—like, now."

"Why are you trying to change the subject?" Joe asked. "Besides, it's not like you bought Frank anything yet."

That comment finally got a smile from Callie. "Now, how do you know that?" she asked.

"You HAVE?!" he asked. He couldn't believe it. Callie was right. He hadn't even gone shopping for Vanessa, let alone his parents, Frank, or any of his friends. Leave it to Callie to be prepared. He had just been teasing her. She was so ultra-prepared for everything that she had probably finished her shopping a month ago.

Realizing that Joe wasn't going to leave her alone, Callie finally gave in. "Do you want some coffee, Joe? Hot chocolate? Frank's not here, obviously, and I don't know where he is. So, you're either going to sit here and stare at me for the next few hours, or I'll get fed up with you and kick you out. In any case, since I'm not yet annoyed by you, I'll try to be a good hostess." Softly, she smiled at him. For many years, she and Joe had teased each other and gotten on each other's nerves. Over the past year, however, they'd become much closer, and she realized that he was not only a good person, but also a good friend as well. Still, she didn't mind chiding him every once and again.

"I'll take the hot chocolate," he replied, ignoring her. "And where is Frank, anyway? Why don't you know?" He followed her into the kitchen.

As Callie started to boil the water, she turned to him with a wry smile. "Gee, Joe—I don't know. He must have forgotten to check in with me every fifteen minutes. I'm his parole officer- you know that."

"Funny, Shaw," Joe replied. Still, he was bothered by Callie's demeanor. She looked tired and a little downtrodden, and he hoped that her health was okay. She had been hurt in one of their last cases several months ago, and he was still feeling a bit guilty about that. Deciding to follow through, he asked her directly as he watched her prepare his drink. "Cal? Are you okay? I mean…how are you feeling? You look stressed."

Handing Joe his drink, she let out a small laugh. "Thanks."

"I'm serious."

"So am I," she responded. "Thanks for caring, and yes, I'm okay. College is rough, but my health is pretty good."

They stood for a few minutes in silence before Callie indicated that Joe should follow her back into the living room. Silently, and without thinking, she handed him some chocolate chip cookies, which she knew were his favorite. Satisfied that he was content by the smile on his face, Callie sat down on the adjoining couch and stared off into space.

Finally, Joe couldn't take it anymore. Taking the remote control in his hand, he switched off the television, knowing that would get Callie's attention. It did. She turned to him inquisitively.

"Come on, Callie. Tell me what's wrong. You're acting really weird lately. Not that you're not normally not out of your mind," he added, to ease the tension.

"It's nothing, Joe," she answered softly. "Don't worry about it."

"Too late," he replied, worried. "You might as well tell me."

Callie stared at Joe for a moment, and when she finally spoke, Joe could swear that he heard a slight tremor in her voice. "I just… well, you're going to think it's stupid." She blushed.

"Come on, Callie. No, I won't," he answered. He immediately decided that now was not a good time to tease her.

"Promise you won't tell Frank." She looked at him, imploring him to promise.

Joe sighed, heavily, before answering her. After a moment, he replied, "Callie, I…I can't do that. Frank's my brother, and he should know if something's the matter, right? Look," he added, seeing how distraught Callie was becoming, "If I can help you without telling Frank, I will. I just can't promise, okay?"

Finally, Callie nodded. Yes, she understood. Frank and Joe were extremely close. She would tell Frank herself but she didn't want to complain. It was just that right now, with her parents away for the holidays on an unexpected business trip, and most of her friends celebrating at home, she didn't have too many people to talk to. Finally, she met Joe's eyes. "Okay," she said, slowly.

"Go ahead," Joe answered, giving her his undivided attention. In his detective exploits with his brother, he had learned how to listen closely and how to pay attention to detail. It was funny how many people thought he never listened, given his carefree attitude and ability to not take life seriously. However, Vanessa, Frank, his family, and even Callie knew that there were deeper sides to him-he just chose not to demonstrate them too often.

Callie bit her lip, and then began. "I don't know, Joe. I guess it's just been a pretty upsetting holiday season for me, that's all. I… well, I mean my parents are gone. I've been pretty stressed out at school. All I've wanted to do was to just relax, you know? But I can't. I didn't tell Frank this, but my scholarship money fell through and they're reviewing my file. There's a chance it may be reinstated, which is fine, but for right now I've just been working so many hours I can barely stand it. All I wanted was to have a nice Christmas, to be able to get my friends- and Frank, especially- nice gifts. Frank and I were saving to go away next spring break, and now I can't do it." Callie blinked back tears and tried to smile, although her attempt was in vain. "So now I don't know what to do. I can't afford much of anything, and that trip next spring…that was all I was looking forward to, and now it can't happen. I...I had to sell my ticket so I at least had some money to by people gifts."

Joe looked at Callie, surprised. To most people, the Shaws looked well off; they lived in a nice house, Callie always dressed impeccably, and she had always been generous to a fault. He couldn't understand it. "Hmmm…" was all he could muster, feeling like an idiot.

Hearing Joe's murmur, Callie let a sad smile come to her face. "We're not poor, Joe. My family is doing just fine. But I insisted that I would pay for college myself—Frank knows that. He's the only one. I was relying on those grants and scholarships, and if I have to keep working like this I don't know what I'm going to do. I'll feel like a failure. Plus, my parents are middle class, like yours- we're not rich. But, I'm in that tax bracket where I'm not eligible for too many loans. I don't know. I'm just sad, I guess. That trip meant so much to your brother and me—we always promised that if we were together in college, we'd start off that new phase of our lives in a special way. Oh, well." She looked down.

Reaching for her, Joe took Callie's hand. "It's okay," he said to her, wanting to offer some comfort. "Come on—you know Christmas isn't about presents. Frank won't care." He squeezed her hand. "And he'll understand about the trip. You have to know that. It's okay to ask for help, you know. I'm sure your parents would try for you."

"I'm sure they would, too," she responded. "But I can't ask them, Joe. And as for Frank…" Her voice trailed off. "Great girlfriend I'm turning out to be, huh?! No gifts, AND no time to spend with him because I'm working so much. PLUS, the little money I have has to be spread around to everyone. I can't even go out on New Years." Seeing the look on Joe's face, Callie tried to change her tone. "Oh, well. Sorry- I don't mean to be the grim reaper. Bah humbug to me!"

"Cal, it's okay," Joe answered. "Really—it'll work out." Trying to cheer her up, he added, "You can get me the Rolls Royce next year."

Despite herself, Callie laughed.

"Well, on a different subject…. I got a really strange card in the mail the other day. It's a bit of a mystery. Wanna help me to solve it, detective boy?" She winked at him.

At that very moment, Callie and Joe jumped when they heard a knock on her door. Shrugging, Callie got up and answered it, smiling when she saw Frank. Joe watched from a distance as his dark –haired brother stepped into Callie's house and presented her with roses before enveloping her in a tight embrace. Kissing her on the cheek, he heard Frank say, "Happy holidays, baby!"

Catching sight of Joe in the distance with a silly smirk on his face, Frank blushed slightly.

"They're beautiful!" Callie said, her face lighting up. "Thank you!" She turned to put them into water when Frank whispered to her, out of Joe's earshot, "You're beautiful, and you're welcome." He smiled when he saw a smile cross her face.

While Callie was in the kitchen, Frank joined his brother in the living room. "Hey, lover boy," Joe teased, happy to see his brother. "Where were you off to today?"

Taking off his coat, Frank shook his head. "Let's see. Oh, that's right—getting my girlfriend flowers. That might be a helpful hint for you if you want to stay on Vanessa's good side this year. Man! This might be the year she tosses you to the curb and comes to her senses!"

Rolling his eyes, Joe smiled. "Vanessa loves me without gifts."

"Hmmm… we'll see how long that keeps up."

Thinking back to his conversation with Callie, Joe replied seriously, "It isn't all about material things you know," he answered, more harshly than he intended to.

Frank gave him a puzzled look. "Yeah, I know that. I was kidding. A joke- you remember what those are, right?! In any case, what are you doing here?"

"Looking for you."

"Well, you found me- surprise!" Frank laughed, in a good mood as usual.

"What's so funny?" Callie asked, staring at the two brothers as she entered the living room. She sat next to Frank, who put an arm around her shoulders and pulled her next to him in a playful hug before he answered her.

"Nothing. Joe was just trying to explain to me why he was visiting you."

"Callie was about to tell me a mystery she's been having. It appears as though she might have a secret admirer!"

Callie shot Joe a glance that told him he might have gone too far. Frank raised his eyebrows. "Oh, yeah? What's this about?"

Callie shook her head at Joe, who gave her a wink. "Well, Frank…I do have a bit of a mystery here. It has nothing to do with a secret admirer—your brother just made that up. Still…." She paused, and then smiled when she met Frank's eyes. "There IS a weird mystery here."

"Well?!" Frank and Joe said at once, and Callie laughed at their seriousness. When it came to detective work, Frank and Joe didn't play around.

"Okay- hang on," she said, and went into the dining room. A few minutes later, she returned with two plain white envelopes.

Before Joe could snatch them from her hands, she pulled them away.

"Okay—here's the story. Yesterday, when I came home, this envelope was at my door. There was no marking on it. But look at what the piece of paper inside says." She pulled it out, and both Frank and Joe looked at it closely. Callie continued speaking. "There's a bell on the paper, and it says "ring" over it. Look-it's in the right hand corner. Then, in the left corner, there's a bird. Finally, right in the middle, there's a picture of hands clasping, and it says, "Two hands." Isn't that bizarre?!"

"That's weird," Joe said, and looked at the paper closely. "And you have no idea where it came from?"

"None." Callie shrugged. "Any idea what it means?"

"No," Frank said, slowly. "But it's strange, that's for sure."

"What's in the other envelope?" Joe asked.

Callie wrinkled her nose. "Basically, the same thing. This was in my mailbox today. Again, it was unmarked. This is just a little different."

She handed the paper to Frank, but it was Joe who read it out loud and commented. "Callie- you attract some strange people!"

"Look who's talking!" she countered.

"Enough!" Frank said. "We should see if this makes any sense."

"Well," Joe began, "It's the same thing. You have the bell with the word "ring" over it, along with a bird on the other side. This time, in the middle, there's a helicopter or something. It says, "Over Air." Huh? Callie- what does this mean?!"

Callie shrugged again. "I have no idea. It seems fairly innocuous, but it IS puzzling. I was hoping you could help Batman over here, Boy Wonder, and solve the puzzle."

"Don't worry, Cal," Frank said reassuringly. "We'll get to the bottom of it."

"Yeah!" Joe said enthusiastically. "It's our Christmas Mystery!" Determined to help Callie out, Joe changed the subject quickly. Maybe focusing on the case would cheer Callie up and get her mind focused on things she could control.

Smiling at his brother who also loved a good mystery, Joe laughed out loud and said, "it looks like the Holidays, Hardy style, have begun!"


	2. Chapter 2

_Thank you to DuskyoDawn21, sm2003495, BMSH, ErinJordan, max2013, and hbndgirl for your kind reviews on the last chapter._

 **Fly Away**

 **Chapter 2**

 **December 21**

The next day, Joe decided that he definitely had to get in some holiday shopping. At this point, there was no excuse to avoid it. Although Frank was presumably done with shopping, and so was Vanessa, he had managed to convince them both to come along with him to the mall. He hated crowds, and at this time of the year they were inevitable. So, along with Callie, they all piled into the Hardys' van and began a shopping adventure.

As the entered the mall, Vanessa couldn't help but to tease Joe. "Hey! If you look closely over there, babe, I think I see Santa. Maybe I should talk to him to see if you've been a good boy."

"Me?!" he answered, feigning shock. "I'm _always_ good." He reached for Vanessa's hand and winked at her.

"Oh, please," Frank snickered. He and Callie had come up behind them. "I don't know how you even manage to keep a straight face and say that at the same time."

Pretending to be hurt, Joe sighed dramatically. "For your information," he began, turning to his brother, "I have been making a list of things I wanted to get all of you. You just lost one of your gifts for that remark."

"Oh, no!" Frank replied, covering his heart with his hand. "Can it be I'm down to just one pair of socks this year?! Whatever did I do to deserve that?" The twinkle in his dark eyes showed Joe that he was only joking.

"They were nice socks," Joe replied defensively, to the laughter of the others.

"I'm sure they were, honey," Vanessa replied, gently patting his hand.

Ignoring Vanessa and Joe's chatter, Frank turned to Callie with a bright smile on his face. "Hmmmm…." he said teasingly to her. "I wonder if you've been good enough to receive something nice from Santa."

Callie looked up and met her boyfriend's eyes, forcing a smile. Deep down, her heart ached. How could she tell him that she couldn't afford a nice gift for him on their fourth Christmas together…that any hope of their trip was gone, and that she might not even be able to see him much over the holidays because of all the work she had do? As she looked at him, Callie felt an overwhelming sadness. She loved Frank so much… she'd have to do something to make this holiday special for him.

Frank's voice brought her back to earth. "Callie? Earth to Callie!" he said playfully, patting her shoulder.

"Oh, sorry," she replied sheepishly.

"Are you okay?" Frank asked, concerned. Callie was certainly acting more subdued than normal. Somehow, though, he hoped his gifts over the holidays would cheer her up. He knew she was bothered by something…and his thoughts automatically flashed to the case. "Is it the envelopes? Don't worry, Cal. We'll figure it out." He hugged her quickly, and placed a quick kiss on the top of her head.

"I'm fine. It's just…" How could she tell him? How?

"It's just what?" he asked.

After a moment's hesitation, Callie finally smiled. "Nothing. Really."

Giving his girlfriend a puzzled glance, he gave up and blew her a kiss, making her smile at last.

"Come ON…." Joe whined, as Frank ran right into him. The mall was jam packed with people.

With a sigh, Frank responded. "Joe—look, I'm hungry. I'm going to go to the food court and try to get something quick to eat. I think my chances of getting a table right now are pretty slim."

"I'm hungry, too," Vanessa chimed in.

"Fine!" Joe said, indignant. "I can buy my own gifts."

"I think that was the point anyway," Callie replied, dryly.

Ignoring the jibe, Joe protested further. "Come on, you guys. I'm hungry, too…but I really need to get this shopping done!"

"Well, whose fault is THAT for waiting for the last minute?" Vanessa teased.

"I'll go," Callie said quietly, among the chatter, as Frank and Vanessa turned to leave.

"What?" Frank asked her.

With a slightly louder voice, Callie managed a smile and said, "I'll go. I think Joe probably needs a little help picking out something for Vanessa anyway."

Catching Joe's grateful look, Callie turned to Frank, who was looking at her curiously. "Really- go on."

"Do you want anything?" Frank asked her.

"Nah," she replied, and stood on tiptoe to give him a kiss on the cheek.

"You can get me two orders of fries, a hamburger, and a shake," Joe said to his brother. When he noticed Vanessa's raised eyebrows, he smiled.

"For stamina," he added.

"Joe, that's like a heart attack waiting to happen," Frank added.

"Oh, well," Joe said with a shrug, and grabbed Callie's arm. "If I die, at least I won't have to worry about getting people gifts! See you later!" With that, Joe dragged Callie into the crowd, leaving Frank and Vanessa staring after them.

Having Callie around proved to be a pretty big help after all. She assisted him in picking out a nice leather jacket for Frank, along with a computer accessory he'd been wanting, and a beautiful heart shaped pendant for Vanessa. Somehow, she knew which perfume his mother liked, and she found the perfect gift for his father—a digital file organizer. After over an hour of shopping, Joe spent just what he'd planned to and was very happy with his purchases. He'd even managed to call Frank and Vanessa on their cell phones and arrange to meet them at the van in a little while so they could also finish up their odds and ends shopping. After dropping off his purchases in the back of the van and hiding them under a blanket, he went to go inside the mall again. As he started walking back with Callie, he realized that she had barely spoken, although she was great at shopping.

"Thanks for all of your help today," he said to her, sincerely. "I know everyone will love their gifts."

"Yeah, they're great," Callie said sadly. "You were very generous."

"Did you…you know… talk to Frank yet?" Joe asked awkwardly.

"No," Callie replied. "I'll think of something."

"I'm telling you, Cal- you have to believe me- Frank really wouldn't care about the gifts."

"I know that," Callie replied, "but I would. I know your brother, Joe. I'm quite sure he went crazy and spent all sorts of ridiculous money to make me happy. I…I can't just get him nothing." She sighed.

"Well… make him something, then. You're a good cook. Make him a cake or something."

In spite of herself, Callie smiled. "Yeah—okay. Merry Christmas Frank- here's a cake!"

"Well, it was an idea at least!" Joe replied. He felt really bad for Callie, but at the same time he thought she should just be honest. After all, he WAS telling the truth. Frank loved Callie, and he really wouldn't care about material things. On the other hand, he understood Callie's point. He'd feel terrible if he couldn't afford to get Vanessa something nice, even if she wouldn't care, either.

Callie didn't answer. As they were walking in the mall, she noticed a sign for a pawn shop. It was a pretty popular place for high school and college kids who needed some extra cash. What did she have to pawn? Nothing, really. As she was about to turn away, Callie accidentally hit her wrist against a wall as she was pushed aside by some teens who were apparently in a hurry. It was then that she thought of it…her bracelet.

If there was one piece of jewelry that Callie cherished, it was that bracelet. Years ago, when she and Frank had started going out, he had bought it for her. She rarely took it off. It was thick gold and pretty expensive, and she knew that Frank had saved for months to buy it for her. Whenever she felt sad or lonely, she always looked at it and it made her happy.

Almost at once she got angry at herself for even thinking of it. The bracelet meant so much to her…and it was the beginning of the most special relationship in her life. Yet, every time she and Frank had come to the mall over the past few months she saw how he was eyeing one particular watch. It was really expensive, and she knew Frank would never splurge on it for himself. Still, he would love it… and he would be so surprised. Callie felt her heart start to pound in her chest, and she closed her eyes, picturing the look on Frank's face when he would open the gift. Then, she looked at her bracelet. Taking a deep breath and fighting back tears, she knew what she had to do—there was no choice, really. Frank's happiness should come before her own, and if he was happy, then she would be, too.

Finally, she felt a tug on her arm. Looking up, she saw Joe. "Where were you?" he asked, angry. It took her a moment to realize that he wasn't so much angry as worried. "I went all the way up ahead and I didn't see you. I thought you got kidnapped or something!" He was being dramatic, but he wanted her to know he was upset with her.

"Well, with the Hardy brothers, you never know!" she quipped lightly to ease the tension.

"That's not funny," he said seriously.

"I know," she replied, and squeezed his hand. "I'll meet you in 20 minutes by the entrance, okay? I have to do something. Tell Frank and Van I'll see them then."

Shaking his head and muttering under his breath about women, Joe went to catch up with his brother and girlfriend. In the twenty minutes she had to herself, Callie was able to turn in her bracelet and run to the watch store. Although she couldn't bear to think about the bracelet, she felt a silly smile sneak up her face when she thought about how happy Frank would be about his gift. She felt instantly better.

Arriving at the mall entrance, Callie found Joe and Vanessa engaged in a rather enthusiastic kiss, but Frank was nowhere to be found.

"Ahem!" Callie coughed, and Joe and Vanessa slowly pulled away from each other. "Ready to go?" she asked, suppressing a smile.

"You seem in a better mood," Joe surmised, happy at Callie's change of demeanor.

"I am," she said with a smile.

About five minutes later, the small group arrived at the van and found Frank there, with a disturbed look on his face. Instantly, Joe was on alert. "What is it? What's wrong?" he asked.

"Someone got into the van," Frank began, slowly.

Joe felt the color drain from his face. He had spent several hundred dollars on gifts—this couldn't be happening! Seeing the look on his brother's face, Frank held up a hand at once. "It's okay, Joe," he began. "Don't worry-nothing appears to have been taken. And I didn't peek at your gifts, either!" he added.

"What?!" Joe, Vanessa, and Callie asked at once.

"Did you leave the door open?" Frank asked, seriously.

"No! I locked it. I mean, I think I did—right, Callie?"

Callie nodded her assent.

"How do you know that someone broke into the van?" Vanessa asked, puzzled.

Hesitating, Frank finally answered, looking directly at Callie. "There was another envelope—for you." He held out his hand, from which an envelope hung.

Callie gasped, and Frank immediately put his arm around her. "Don't worry, baby. We'll get to the bottom of this." Looking at Joe, he said gravely, "We need to start working on this- now!"

"What does it say?" Joe asked his brother.

With trembling hands, Callie opened the envelope and read the paper, answering Joe's inquiry. "It says "ring" with the bells, and it has a bird again. This time, though, there's a cutout of a crowd of people from a magazine, it looks like! It says, 'Many possibilities.'" Turning to her boyfriend, she asked him, "Oh, Frank- what do you think it means?!"

Giving her a reassuring hug, Frank shook his head. "I have no idea. But I'll do my best to find out. Don't worry," he added. Whispering in her ear, he continued, "I won't let anyone hurt you."

With Frank's arm around her, Callie let herself be comforted, not failing to miss the exchange between Frank and Joe with their eye contact. She knew they'd get on this right away. At that moment, all thoughts of the bracelet were forgotten. All she wanted was a safe and happy holiday season—for all of them.


	3. Chapter 3

**Note:** _Merry Christmas to all who celebrate! Thank you very much to DusktoDawn21 (Callie sold the bracelet because it was the only thing that had value enough to get the watch for Frank) , sm2003495, BMSH, ErinJordan, and max2013 for your reviews on my last chapter. I appreciated them very much!_

Fly Away

Chapter 3

 **December 22**

"OOOHHH!" Vanessa cooed to Joe the following evening. They were standing in the Hardys' living room and setting up the Christmas tree.

"OOOHHH, WHAT?!" Joe asked his girlfriend as he handed her some garland so that she could wrap it around her side of the tree. Peering over some ornaments he had just hung up, he caught sight of Vanessa and made a silly face at her, causing her to explode in giggles. When she finally settled down and finished wrapping the garland around the tree, she came over to where Joe was and gave him a hug.

"I was just so excited that Christmas is only three days away! Yay!" She started clapping her hands like a little girl who just found out that she had received a favorite Barbie doll.

Laughing, Joe reached for her and pulled her into his arms for a lingering kiss. When they finally separated, he teased her. "Well, now. I may just have to talk to Santa for you and see if I have any pull in it getting here even sooner. " He winked at her.

Smiling, Vanessa led Joe to the couch, where she sat down comfortably on his lap. As Joe wrapped his arms around her, Vanessa leaned comfortably back against him, and they stayed that way for some time in contented silence. Finally, Vanessa sighed happily and turned to Joe, her eyes aglow with happiness. "It's not just Christmas, Joe!" she exclaimed merrily. "It's... I don't know… the whole holiday season. Christmas is just a part of it. Maybe we'll get to go into the city and see the tree and go ice- skating! And then there's New Year's! Maybe we can try to do something special. It's too bad that the party at the Airforce Base was sold out, huh?" She smiled whimsically at him.

Bayport Airforce Base was holding a huge extravaganza for New Year's. The whole place was going to be lit up and set up to be a fairy tale event. It was a black-tie only affair, and some of the best musicians from New York were going to be playing there. Unfortunately, tickets had been sold out since June even though they were remarkably expensive and hard to get. However, rumor had it that there would be several restaurants in the adjoining areas to host New Year's parties as well, and that fireworks at midnight which were being set off from the surrounding bay by the airforce base would be visible all over. Now, it was simply a matter of deciding which restaurant to attend to ring in the New Year.

Still, Joe felt bad about not being able to get tickets to the main event, and smiled sadly at Vanessa. "I'm sorry, babe. You know that if there was any way I could have bought the tickets for you, I would have." He met her eyes with a puppy-dog stare.

Playfully pinching his nose, Vanessa laughed. "I know that, hon," she said with a smile. "Don't worry- I'm sure we'll have a great time wherever we go!"

"Well, you'll look pretty hot in that new dress that you just bought!" he countered, making her blush.

"It's only once a year," Vanessa responded, sheepishly. "I think I'm allowed to treat myself!"

"The treat's all mine!" Joe teased, with a twinkle in his blue eyes.

"Oh, hush!" Vanessa whispered before kissing Joe again. After a few moments, Vanessa pulled back as if an idea had finally struck her. "Joe?" she asked.

"Hmmm…?" he murmured.

"Where are Frank and Callie?"

Joe straightened up from his comfortable pose. It was almost 10:00, far later than Frank and Callie would have been at the house. It was a tradition that every December 23rd all of the Hardys' friends would come over and help to decorate for Christmas. Vanessa and Joe had gotten a little bit of a head start tonight, and Frank and Callie were supposed to have been there to help a few hours ago. Still, they were nowhere in sight.

Looking into his girlfriend's eyes, Joe responded, simply, "THAT, my dear, is a very good question."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"We're going to be late," Callie said to Frank a little earlier in the evening. They were sitting in her dining room. Callie had made Frank dinner, complete with all the trimmings. When he gave her a surprised glance, she had only smiled and said, "A special dinner for a special guy." It made her feel happy to be able to control some aspect of her life. She was dead tired from having worked all day, but when Frank came by as scheduled at 7:00, she couldn't wait to see him. Besides, it would be only three more days until she could give him his watch, and the idea of it made her smile again.

"What?" Frank asked, looking at her. He had slowly watched the color come into his girlfriend's cheeks. Reaching for her hand, he linked his fingers through hers.

Looking into his eyes, Callie just shook her head and bit her lip. At any other time, she would have treasured this moment so very much. But there were so many things on her mind. Maybe she should tell him….

"Honey?"

Callie looked up at him again and sighed. Then, standing up, she walked behind him and rested her hands on his shoulders, massaging them. He leaned back and looked at her quizzically.

"Oh, stop," she said and managed a smile. "Can't a girl give her guy a massage? There's not always a deeper meaning involved," she added, and leaned over to kiss him lightly on the lips.

Frank stood up next to her and gave her a hug before guiding her into the living room. Sitting down on the couch next to her, he pulled her to him, wrapping his arms around her. He allowed himself a few minutes to just enjoy some private time with his girlfriend before speaking. When he did, though, he said, gently, "Come on, Cal. I know you—and I know something's bothering you. Spill it."

Callie closed her eyes and involuntarily moved closer to him. Feeling Frank still holding her offered some comfort. She wished she knew what she could tell him and what she should remain silent about. Finally, she said, softly, "I'm worried about those stupid cards." Well, that was true in any event. She had received another one today when she had been at work. She felt Frank tighten his hold on her for a moment before her let her go. When he did, he sat up and grabbed a piece of paper that was sitting on her end-table.

"Wh... what are you doing?" she sputtered, thrown at Frank's sudden change of temperament.

"Trying to figure it out. I'm sorry, Callie. I've been so crazy with holiday plans that I haven't had much time to concentrate on this. Besides, it seemed like a stupid prank for someone's amusement, and you didn't seem to be in any danger. Things got more intense yesterday when the van was opened…and you got a new card today. I'm gonna look at this right now, and tomorrow, Joe and I will spend the day on this- promise. Do you want to help?" he asked her.

Callie blushed. "I… well, I'm working tomorrow."

"Again?" Frank furrowed his brows. "You're working a lot lately." He put an arm around her. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah…I mean, yes…it will be. If I can just stop getting freaked out by these stupid messages, I have a feeling everything will be okay."

Frank looked at her, and she knew that he knew she was lying. Still, she was grateful that he didn't push the issue. Besides, the truth was that she really was getting scared about these mysterious messages. "I feel like I'm being watched!" she blurted out, to Frank's surprise. "Why would someone want to do this to me?"

"Don't worry, Cal. I don't know- but I'll find out—okay?" He kissed the tip of her nose.

"Okay," she said, feeling only slightly better.

"Well, let's see what we have then, shall we?" Frank asked, and Callie nodded.

"You've gotten four cards, right? Each a day apart."

"Yes," Callie replied, looking at Frank writing things down.

"Okay," he noted seriously. "All four of them have this bell in the corner, with the word "RING" on it. The only other similarity is that all four have the birds."

"What does that mean?" Callie asked, hesitant. She hated puzzles like this—when she was at the center of them! It seemed like she and Vanessa—and Iola, Joe's former girlfriend—along with all of their friends, somehow got involved in Frank and Joe's cases unwittingly. Not that it mattered—she'd stay with Frank no matter what.

Frank, though, knew what was on her mind. "You're right," he said with a sigh. "This is probably directed at me or Joe. I'm sorry, baby. I don't want you to be scared, especially around the holidays." Pausing for a moment, he recanted. "Scratch that- I don't want you to be scared, EVER. I'll work on this until I figure it out." He looked into her eyes.

Finally, Callie broke the spell. "Um, Frank?"

"Huh?" he asked, still looking at her.

"We can't move on until this mystery is solved."

"Right."

"So…let's solve it!" she said, and nodded toward the paper.

"Oh...yeah," he replied, embarrassed. Refocusing, he began again. "So we have this "RING" and a bell, as well as a bird." Then, let's look at the messages." He jotted them down.

 _A picture of two hands clasping. Says so._

 _A helicopter that says "over air." Obvious._

 _A crowd of people from a magazine. Says "many people."_

 _More ominous. "You'll pay" with a picture of dollar bills._

Frank looked at Callie and shook his head. "It doesn't seem to make sense. I don't like the last one, though- I'll be honest. What does "you'll pay" mean? WHO will pay? For what?"

"I don't know," Callie said and shivered, moving next to Frank.

Frank gave her a quick hug, and then said, "Wait here a sec. Let me get the original envelopes."

With a nod, Callie forced a smile and watched him head in the opposite direction. Not two minutes later, there was a loud _BANG!_ That resonated through the house…and the place was surrounded by darkness.

Callie's screams were the only audible noises…


	4. Chapter 4

**Note:** _Thank you to DusktoDawn21, hbndgirl, max2013, Erin Jordan, and BMSH for your reviews on the last chapter. I appreciated them all!_

 **Fly Away**

 **Chapter 4**

 **December 23**

"Frank!" Callie screamed. She could feel her heart pounding in her chest. For what seemed like an eternity, the lights remained off in her house. In reality, though, she knew that it couldn't have been for more than a few minutes.

Finally, the lights snapped back on. It took Callie only seconds to see Frank, who was kneeling on the floor with his mouth open. Out of the corner of her eye, Callie saw that her dining room window was wide open. At the moment, though, she didn't care. She reached Frank just as he was slowly standing up. Throwing her arms around him, she buried her face in his shoulder and clung to him tightly.

"Are you okay?!" she managed to sputter. "Wh.. what happened?"

Frank held her for a moment, and then quickly pulled back from her.

"Cal—I have to go outside and check this out—now!" He made a forward movement towards the door.

"No!" Callie pleaded, grabbing his hand. "Please, Frank. Whoever—whatever—that was, please don't go looking for it! You're lucky to be okay."

Frank, who was about to go outside, finally acquiesced when he saw how distraught Callie was. With a sigh, he squeezed her hand. "I'm _fine_ ," he assured her. "But _you're_ not. Hon, really- I have to go and check it out. Stay right here- take the cordless phone. If I'm not back in five minutes, do NOT come after me- just call Joe, okay?" Seeing how terrified Callie looked, his voice softened. "Callie, really- whoever was here is obviously gone. I want to see if he left footprints or anything, or if anyone saw anything. I'll be right back."

"Okay," Callie whispered, and watched Frank disappear out the front door. She took a shaky breath and blinked back tears. Why would someone want to hurt her? Or Frank?! What did all of the messages mean?! This holiday, which had already started out so badly for her, was just getting worse and worse. Clinging tightly to the phone, she just closed her eyes and prayed intently for Frank to return safely to her. She HATED how he had to investigate everything, even if he was trying to protect her. Why couldn't he be… less of a GUY or something?!

Still, true to his word, Frank returned a few minutes later with a disappointed look on his face.

"Nothing?" Callie asked, relieved that he was okay.

"Nothing," he said with a sigh.

Then, out of the corner of his eyes, Callie saw it—another envelope! Whoever had opened her window had apparently left another message for her. "Frank!" she gasped, and pointed to the floor. Meeting her eyes, Frank shook his head and carefully lifted the envelope, pausing only a moment to shut the window which was now letting in gusts of frosty air.

Indicating that she should sit next to him, Frank held out the dining room chair for Callie and allowed her to sit down before taking a seat, himself.

"Well, let's take a look," he said to her and gently squeezed her hand.

"B…but wouldn't the person leave fingerprints?" Callie stuttered, trying to focus. She was surprised Frank wouldn't have thought of that.

"Not necessarily," Frank replied. "To tell you the truth, Cal, if we're dealing with someone who likes to leave codes and things like that, then we're dealing with someone professional. He or she wouldn't leave fingerprints. It'd be highly unlikely."

"So—do you think I'm in real danger?" Callie asked fearfully.

Frank tried to reassure her, but he realized his attempts were in vain. "Well, I don't know," he said, thoughtfully. "Someone didn't exactly break into your house. He or she opened a window from the outside. Are you sure you locked it?"

Nodding, Callie waited for Frank to continue.

"And the circuit breaker… that could be jimmied ahead of time, right?"

"That means someone WAS in my house!" Callie exclaimed nervously.

"No, no…" Frank said. "It doesn't have to be. They can be… um… electronically set from the outside, I think."

"Really?" Callie asked. "I never heard of that."

"Yeah," Frank said quickly. "It's not common, but it CAN be done."

Shrugging her shoulders, Callie said, "At least you're okay—and so am I –that's the most important thing."

"You're right about that," Frank replied. Then, glancing at the paper in front of him, he looked at Callie. Opening it slowly as to not disturb evidence, he read the lines, along with Callie.

"Okay- here's that bell again with the word "Ring." Again, we have the bird! We'll have to look at that really closely. Obviously, since it's repeated, that's the main crux of the message. Plus, there's a lot of people in the attached picture- wait! What does that say?" he squinted his eyes at the small letters in bold right above the picture.

Leaning down, Callie read the message and looked up at Frank, perplexed. "Over Years"?! WHAT on earth does that mean?!"

With a sigh, Frank leaned back and rubbed his eyes. Finally, he turned to Callie. "I don't know. But I told you- we'll figure it out." Grabbing all of the notes in his hand, he reached into his jacket pocket and put them in there. "We'll talk about it with Joe later."

As soon as he said the name, Frank and Callie turned to one another and groaned. "Joe!"

"We were supposed to meet him at 8:00. With everything going on, I guess we forgot," Frank added. "What time IS it anyway?"

Together, Frank and Callie turned to the clock on the wall. "Midnight," Callie muttered.

"Well, there's one thing I DO know," Frank said, and turned to his girlfriend. "You're not staying here alone until this case is solved. Come—stay at my house. We have plenty of room."

Hesitating, Callie bit her lip.

"What?" Frank sighed, looking at her in shock. "You can't be serious that you want to stay here alone, can you?!"

Feeling her eyes well up with tears, Callie turned away for a moment to compose herself.

"Callie, what's wrong?" Frank asked. Wow—she had gotten that question a lot lately. Turning to him, Callie was about to make up a lame excuse for her behavior when she looked into Frank's eyes; however, she realized she couldn't do it anymore. Like it or hate it, she would tell Frank the truth.

"I…I have something to tell you," she said, softly, and told him to sit down again. Frank hesitated, concerned, but did as he was told. Taking his hand, Callie found herself talking to Frank for the next twenty minutes, almost nonstop. She told him all about her financial situation at college and why she had to work so much. She told him about her fears of letting down her parents, and her promise to them to keep the house in good condition and to stay on top of the bills until they returned on New Year's Day. She also told him about how scared she was about the threats against her on top of everything else and, finally, she told him the hardest thing of all—how she couldn't afford not only to go out on New Years, but also that their trip—the one they'd planned so long for—was an impossibility. The one thing she didn't tell him was about his watch or her bracelet…some things were too hard to explain.

When she was done speaking, Callie found that she couldn't look Frank in the eye. She felt incredibly embarrassed and sad yet, at the same time, relieved. She'd never kept any secrets from him. There really was no reason for her to start doing so now.

Frank didn't speak for a few minutes, and then reached out for her, hugging her tightly. "It'll be okay," he said, simply. "I promise." He meant it, too.

"You know I have three little words to say to you, right? I mean, it kind of sums up this whole predicament." He kissed the top of her head.

"Thanks," she said softly. "I know."

"You know what?" he asked.

"I love you, too."

"Oh," Frank said, and his pause was so long that finally Callie looked up.

"What?" she had to ask.

Finally, Frank couldn't stop his playful smile. "I was gonna say, "You big dork," but if you love me, I can't help it!"

Despite herself, Callie started laughing before swatting Frank on the shoulder. "YOU'RE the dork," she replied. Then, hugging Frank around his shoulders, she kissed his cheek. "But I still love you anyway."

"Go pack."

"What?" Callie asked, raising an eyebrow.

"You're seriously coming back to my house until the case is over. I know your parents…they would want it that way, and I'm not taking no for an answer."

His words were kind and generous as always, but they brought Callie back to the reality of the situation once more. She stood up and nodded slowly at Frank before heading upstairs. After she had finished packing several days worth of clothing for work, everyday, and night-time, as well as makeup and hair accessories, another forty minutes had passed.

"I'd hate to see you on a long trip!" Frank quipped, but then stopped as he realized what he'd said. "I'm sorry."

"So am I," Callie said with a small, sad smile.

Together they headed back to the Hardys' home. Outside, a gentle snow had begun to fall. Frank was struck by the beauty of the moment as he led Callie to his car. Callie, thinking of the case, her financial problems, and the difficulty of the holiday season, was grateful, again, for having Frank. She tried to ignore the chills running through her as she glanced up and noticed a lone icicle forming on one of the nearby branches. Wishing upon it for some peace, she watched as it slowly dropped to the ground and shattered, and hoped it wasn't an omen for things to come.


	5. Chapter 5

**Note:** _Thank you to sm2003495, max2013, ErinJordan, and hbndgirl for your reviews on the last chapter. I appreciate them. I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday and best wishes for 2019._

 **Fly Away**

 **Chapter 5**

 **Christmas Day**

Joe smiled as he looked around the family living room. It was Christmas, by far his favorite holiday, and things couldn't be going better. That morning, he and Frank had finished all of the decorations for their party this evening, and everything had turned out beautifully. Lights hung down not only from their richly decorated tree, but also from the banister and doors as well. Little snowflakes decorated nearly every room, and he had strategically placed mistletoe in the various areas into which he knew he'd be steering Vanessa. That plan had worked!

Now, as he looked around and grabbed a handful of his mom's cookies, Joe couldn't help but to feel satisfied. This-this is what Christmas was supposed to be like. His entire family was around, laughing and joking. His friends were there as well. Chet was trying to balance a spoon on his nose and kept poking himself in the eye as a result. Biff and his girlfriend were there as well, showing pictures of their recent trip to Colorado where they had experienced a great deal of snow and a lot of skiing. Tony and Aunt Gertrude were exchanging pizza recipes, Liz was dancing with Frank, trying unsuccessfully to teach him how to swing dance. Frank was looking desperately for Callie to save him. Joe laughed- everything was great. The only person missing was….

"Hey!"

The voice startled Joe and he almost choked on his cookie. Reaching quickly for a glass of milk, he downed it quickly, sputtering until he at last settled down. Vanessa stood next to him, laughing.

"What's so funny?" he asked her, wiping his mouth with a napkin he had just picked up. "You could have killed me!"

"I know… I'm sorry," Vanessa replied, trying to keep a straight face. "But I knew my big, bad boyfriend would be able to withstand such a sneak attack, so I figured I'd try," she finished, dryly.

"Is that your way of saying that you're sorry?" Joe asked, raising an eyebrow at her.

"More or less," Vanessa replied, a smile creeping to her face.

"Well, all right," Joe responded, finally returning to his old self. "I suppose I can forgive you- considering it's Christmas and all." Pulling her into his arms, he kissed her deeply. Breathless, Vanessa finally pulled away. "What was that for?" she asked.

As an answer, Joe went behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist, leaning his head on her shoulder. Kissing her ear, he whispered, "You're going to have to work LONG and HARD to make me feel better after that attack! That was phase one."

Laughing, Vanessa leaned back against him and sighed contentedly. "I guess we all have our price to pay," she said, teasingly. Looking into the room, she had to smile. "Joe, this is great, isn't it?! I LOVE Christmas! And we still have the big New Year's party to go to as well."

"I know," Joe said, and gave her a gentle squeeze. "This is the best time of the year."

Turning, Vanessa smiled at him. She fingered the pendant that now hung about her neck. "You shouldn't have done this—really," she emphasized. "It was way too much money."

"Well, you did too much yourself," Joe responded, thinking of the new Apple TV that Vanessa had gotten him for his room.

"Yeah, but this…" Vanessa's voice trailed off and she bit her lip. She knew Joe had spent a lot of money on the beautiful necklace that she was now wearing. Still, when he had given it to her… her heart had stopped. Finally, Joe had confided that Callie had helped him pick it out, and she smiled. Leave it to Callie to have such exemplary taste! And, leave it to Joe to go so out of his way for her.

"Hey, nothing's too good for my girl," Joe said seriously, and grabbing her hand, he led her into the living room to watch Chet's latest fiasco…..

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Meanwhile, Frank was breathing a sigh of relief that he had managed to escape from Liz with some semblance of dignity in tact. Apparently, Phil Cohen, one of their friends, was an expert at swing dancing and, seeing Frank's look of desperation, he had quickly rescued his friend. Giving him a grateful glance, Frank had gracefully slid out of the living room to search for Callie. He still hadn't had a chance to give her the Christmas gift that he had bought for her, and he couldn't wait. He just knew that he had to tell her…something…about the mysterious letters she was receiving, but he couldn't tell her what he knew…not yet.

After searching around, he found Callie in the spare bedroom where she had been staying the past two days. She was looking out the window, and a faraway look was in her eyes.

"Hey," he said quietly to her, causing her to jump. When she turned around, Frank had to catch his breath. She looked beautiful, as always, but her dark eyes held a note of sadness to them that had rarely been there before this month. _I should tell her_ , he thought to himself. Still, he knew he couldn't tell her what he had found. It wasn't the right time- not on Christmas.

"Hey," she said, and walked over to him, giving him a hug.

"You okay?" he asked her, not letting go.

After a moment's hesitation, she smiled. "Yeah. I'm fine."

"Mmmmm…" he muttered, unsure of what to say next.

"I just came up here for a few minutes to collect my thoughts, you know?"

Guiding Callie over to the bed, he sat down next to her and wrapped his arm around her tightly. "Miss your parents?" he asked her.

"Well, yeah," Callie admitted. Then, she smiled. "But your parents are great. Thanks."

"For what?"

"For making me stay here with you. It would have been a pretty miserable holiday without you."

Frank leaned down and kissed her. "Nah- I did it for purely selfish reasons," he said with a smile, his dark eyes twinkling.

"Did you and Joe find out anything yet about the case?" she asked. Callie needed to know what was going on. At the same time, she was trying hard not to think about it, as scared as she was. And, after what had happened earlier tonight….well, that seemed impossible.

She felt Frank hesitate and knew that he knew something. When he didn't answer, Callie sighed. All right—Frank wasn't talking. He probably had his reasons. _But I should tell him,_ a little voice in the back of her mind said to her. Still, she didn't talk.

"Not tonight," he said at last.

"Okay," she reluctantly agreed.

After a moment's silence, Frank came out with, "Hey! Cal, I forgot to give you your Christmas gift!" Excitedly, he got up and left the room. When he came back, Callie was feeling excited, too- she couldn't wait for him to receive his gift, either!

Sitting next to her, Frank presented her with a beautiful small silver box.

"What's this?" she asked, taking it.

"You'll find out when you open the gift-wrap!" he said to her with tender smile.

"Well… okay!" Callie said and tried to contain her enthusiasm. Opening the card Frank gave her, she read it, and felt her eyes brim with tears which she quickly wiped away.

Laughing, Frank said, "Hon, you haven't even opened your gift yet!"

"The card was beautiful," she said softly.

"Well, it's all true—you know that," he said with a blush creeping up his face. For a long instant they stared at each other, until Frank finally couldn't take it anymore. "Open!" he said, so childlike that Callie burst out laughing.

"All right, all right," she said with smile. "But wait!"

Frank sighed in exasperation. "You're killing me!" he quipped.

In response, Callie reached under the bed and handed a gift wrapped box to Frank. Stunned, he looked at it for a moment. "But… I mean, you didn't have to get me anything!" he said, surprised. He meant it, too. Callie couldn't afford much this year, and certainly she should be saving her money.

"I know- I just…wanted to. Go ahead," she encouraged him in a soft voice.

"You first."

"No- together," Frank insisted.

"Okay," Callie said, unable to stop herself from smiling at what Frank's reaction would be.

The next few moments were spent tearing wrapping paper from the boxes… and then in absolute silence as each of them stared at their gifts in disbelief.

"I… I don't know what to say," Frank whispered, staring at the watch that he had wanted so badly but had been unable to afford. Turning to Callie, he was dumbstruck. There was no way that she could have afforded to get this for him!

Still, as he was about to talk, he felt his heart warm at the look on Callie's face.

She was staring at the box, and she looked so incredulous that he snapped back into reality.

"Do you like it?!" he asked, totally pleased with himself. He made a mental note to insist that Callie return the watch. There was no way he's allow her to get something like that for him. Still, the thought touched him deeply.

Callie turned to him, no longer trying to hide the tears. Wiping them away from her face, Frank took his gift her out of the box. Standing up behind her, he clasped it around her neck as he spoke to her.

"Look, Cal. It's the necklace I've wanted to get you forever. Finally, I could afford it. See? It's the one that matches the bracelet that I got you a few years ago." He had wanted so badly to complete the set for her, and was thrilled when he could finally afford to do so. He knew with absolute certainty that the next big piece of jewelry he'd get her would be an engagement ring… this was almost as valuable. When she didn't speak, he hugged her to him. "I'm so glad that the set was still available! The store where I had initially bought your bracelet was closed, but the former jeweler is still at the new location and knew exactly what set I was looking for. He recognized me from a few years ago and wondered if I was going to complete the set. The fact that he was still there just when I had lost hope was kind of ironic, huh?"

Burying her face in his chest, she whispered, "You have no idea…"


	6. Chapter 6

**Note:** _Thank you to EvergreenDreamweaver (I will wrote back to you this week!:) ), sm2003495, hbndgirl, ErinJordan, and max 2013 for your much appreciated reviews on the last chapter. Happy New Year!_

 **Fly Away**

 **Chapter 6**

 **December 28** **th**

Several days had passed since Christmas, and Callie found herself wondering, yet again, what she should do. The mysterious letters kept being sent to her and, despite everything, she really was scared. She wanted to pressure Frank and Joe to do something more quickly. It seemed like they weren't particularly concerned. _Then again_ , she thought, _maybe it's because I haven't exactly been acting concerned, either._

That much was true, at least. She had been working so many hours and she was dead tired. Christmas had been an overwhelming experience for her. Every time she thought of Frank's beautiful gift, the irony of the situation threatened to overwhelm her. She knew Frank was expecting her to wear the jewelry and thus far she had managed to avoid the situation since she couldn't exactly dress up for work. Still, New Year's Eve was coming up soon. Fortunately, she had bought a beautiful navy dress before she had found out about her scholarship troubles, so she had something to wear. On the other hand, there was no way she could avoid showing up without her bracelet, and she honestly had no idea what to do about it.

New Year's was turning out to be a gala event. Even though Frank and Joe had been unable to get tickets to the Air Force Base celebration, they, along with several of their friends, had managed to make reservations for a night of dinner and dancing at a fancier restaurant near the city. Frank had, of course, surprised her with the tickets, knowing that she couldn't afford them at the moment. The last words he had said to her as he told of their plans had been, "I can't wait to see you in your new jewelry! You'll look more gorgeous than ever, if that's possible!"

Callie sat down on her bed at the Hardys' home and looked out the window, gloom descending on her like the clouds looming overhead. "I'm sorry, Frank," she whispered, more to herself than anyone in particular. Blinking back tears, she tried to close her eyes and rest, not allowing herself to think of the bracelet, money troubles, the horrible letters, and the terrible, ever present fear that she was being watched….

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Joe, meanwhile, knew that he had a mission. He had been looking for his brother for a few minutes when he found him sitting in their living room, watching a science program on television. Standing in front of the screen, Joe blocked his brother's view, finally causing him to look up.

"What?" Frank asked, exasperated.

"I need to talk to you," Joe replied, simply.

"I figured that," Frank said, rolling his eyes and sitting up. He flipped on the light-switch and met his brother's eyes. "Go ahead."

At that moment, Vanessa entered the room. "Did you ask him?" she inquired, speaking to Joe.

"Ask me what?" Frank replied back, beginning to feel like he was being left out of something.

"I was about to," Joe replied, but he was instantly cut off by Vanessa, who plopped resolutely on the couch next to Frank.

"He was about to ask you why you haven't done anything to help Callie with her case!" Vanessa fumed, to Frank's utter amazement.

"Huh?" Frank asked, stunned. "What are you talking about?"

Joe sat next to Vanessa and took her hand, speaking to Frank in an even tone, but a serious one. He knew being calm would be the way to get through to his brother. Vanessa flying off the handle wouldn't do anyone any good. Joe almost smiled as he thought of the fact that he was acting more like Frank and Vanessa acting more like him. Still, he wasn't really in a joking mood.

"Frank," he began, "Callie's been getting more of these letters and we haven't done anything to help her. I know they may not mean anything, but come on! She's upset. Just now I was upstairs and she was talking to herself, and I glanced into the room. I saw her looking at one of the letters and it appeared that she was crying. I think we need to get on this."

Frank's eyes widened in surprise, and he felt his heart skip a beat. "She was crying?" he asked, timidly. He couldn't stand the thought of that. This had gone far enough.

Seeing the look on Frank's face, Joe's own expression softened. "Yeah. Come on, Frank. I know you care, but we've been blowing this off. I mean, although Callie doesn't appear to be in any serious danger, our van and her house were broken into and that's a major issue."

"Yeah! You don't seem to care about Callie and I want to know why you're acting this way!" Vanessa's voice was strong, and filled with worry.

As he looked into Vanessa's peering eyes and Joe's stern expression, Frank sighed heavily. "Guys," he said, "I think there's something you need to know…."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Later that night, after dinner, Callie decided to broach the subject of the messages. She didn't miss the exchange between Frank, Joe, and Vanessa, and now she found herself more puzzled than ever.

"What?!" she asked at last. "Come on, guys! What aren't you telling me?"

"That we haven't found a lead, but that we are working on it," Joe responded, a little too quickly.

Knowing that all three were being silent for a specific purpose, Callie decided to let the subject drop for a little while. If they were hiding something, chances were that it was for a good reason. With a slight shudder, Callie tried not to let her imagination run wild.

Seeing the look on her face, Vanessa encouraged her. "Don't worry, Callie. Everything will be fine. Why don't we examine the clues again? Some fresh insights would be good."

"Excellent idea," Frank chimed in, and went to get the letters, stopping only momentarily to give Callie a reassuring squeeze on the shoulder. After several minutes Frank returned, and Callie took up the pad into which Frank had begun to record the notes over a week earlier.

"All right," Frank said, sliding into a seat next to Callie. "Maybe we should start with where you have received all of the letters."

Callie sighed and leaned back. She'd been over this a hundred times. Still, with Frank, there was usually a method to his madness.

"Okay," she began, slowly. "I received the first ones at my house. One was in the van when we went shopping. One was delivered, if you can call it that, the night that you were at my house."

"But then," Vanessa chimed in, "The rest have been delivered here! I mean, some were in the Hardys' mailbox, and I think one or two were slipped under the door, right?"

Callie nodded. Then, with a slow dawn of understanding coming over her, she blanched. "Th...that means…" she sputtered, "that I'm definitely being watched!"

Joe reached over to her and took her hand reassuringly. "Yeah. That's the conclusion that we came to as well. But don't panic, okay? That's why you're staying with us and nothing is going to happen to you while we're here."

Although she appreciated Joe's effort, Callie swallowed hard, unconvinced. "But what about work? What about when I'm away from you guys?"

Frank slipped an arm around her, feeling horrible. He hated to see her this way, but there was nothing her could do; there was no other way. He wouldn't tell her what he knew. "I know, baby," he said gently to her. "But I'll drive you to work and pick you up. Nothing is going to happen to you while you're at work—too many people."

"Frank's right," Joe added, "and we're only a phone call away."

"But have you picked up on the other clues? I mean, have you figured out the messages?" Callie pleaded, desperate for some headway.

"Well, we're working on it," Frank responded.

"Why don't we look at the messages and see what we've got?" Callie suggested, and everyone readily agreed. As they were looking over the messages, Callie couldn't help but to feel as though they should have been able to have seen….something…in the clues so far, and she was feeling a bit downtrodden. Still, she plugged away at it, determined to distract herself as much as possible.

Frank wrote down what she dictated on the note-pad.

 **OLD**

 _Two hands clasping or gripped together. Says "Two hands."_

 _A picture of a helicopter- says "Over Air."_

 _Magazine cutout- a lot of people. Words- "Many possibilities."_

 _Pictures of dollar bills- ominous warning—"You'll pay."_

 _Several stones. Rocks. Says "Over Years."_

 **NEW**

 _Pictures of stars together with odd message: "Next nights."_

 _"Enthralling events." Some picture of a brochure… name undisclosed._

 _Picture. Girl terrified? Message states "Anxiously waiting." Ominous._

 _"New yelling." Picture of a microphone._

 _A picture of a novel. Says "Great Expectations."_

Callie leaned back against Frank as he finished writing, and they all looked at each other in amazement.

"I have no idea," Callie said at last.

"Yeah—it doesn't seem to make any sense," Vanessa agreed.

"And—on top of everything—there's still the picture of the bell in the top right hand corner with the word "ring," and a bird in the left hand corner," Joe added. "I have to admit, this is one of the craziest things I've seen."

Callie didn't miss the comment that was directed at Frank, and she felt apprehensive again at the thought that they were not sharing some vital information with her.

"Maybe the best thing to do is to survey the house," Joe suggested. "I mean, if this guy- girl- whatever—is leaving notes here, then I'm sure we can catch him."

"Good idea!" Vanessa said, and smiled at Joe, who returned the affectionate glance.

At that moment, the phone rang. "I'll get it," Frank said quickly, eager to avoid Callie's prying gaze. She knew him too well, and it was only a matter of time before she would demand to know what he was keeping from her.

"Hello?" he said into the receiver.

"Frank Hardy? There's something you should know…" the voice responded.

Quiet, Frank stared in disbelief as he listened to the voice at the other end of the line.


	7. Chapter 7

**Note:** _Wow. Thank you so much for all of the lovely reviews on the last chapter. That was a real treat for an older story of mine! There are only two more chapters after this. Thank you again to Drumboy100, hbndgirl, LaurieQ, Erin Jordan, and max2013 for your reviews on chapter 6._

 **Fly Away**

 **Chapter 7**

 **December 30**

Several days later, Callie found herself in Vanessa's bedroom, where Vanessa was trying on her dress for the following evening. As she whirled in front of the mirror for Callie's benefit, Callie couldn't help but to smile. If there was one bright moment of sunshine in the entire holiday season, it was Vanessa's infectious laughter and enthusiasm for the following evening. _If happiness really could shine through, then Vanessa must be walking on air_ , Callie thought to herself. Vanessa looked so beautiful and carefree, and Callie was desperate to remember was that feeling was like.

"Callie?"

Hearing her voice, Callie looked at Vanessa. "What? I'm sorry. I guess my mind was somewhere else."

Sitting down next to Callie, Vanessa gave her a small hug. "I'm really sorry that everything's been so rough for you. Don't you worry—Frank and Joe will solve the case."

"How do you know that?" Callie asked, dejected.

"Because I do," Vanessa responded. "As sure as there are death and taxes, there is the assurance that the Hardy boys will solve their cases."

Despite herself, Callie laughed. "A little melodramatic, Van, don't you think?!"

Seeing Callie smile lifted Vanessa's spirits dramatically. "Yes!" she said, and stood up, playfully pulling Callie with her and dancing with her around the bed. "But still—it cheered you up, right?!"

"Right," Callie replied, catching her breath and laughing. No matter how bad things seemed to get, being around Vanessa was like a breath of fresh air. She was a true rarity in the world, and Callie was so glad that Vanessa had found her way into Joe Hardy's life. They really were perfect for one another.

Still, once she settled down again, Callie lay back on Vanessa's bed and sighed.

"Now what's the matter, babes?" Vanessa asked. "The messages are becoming less frequent, the party is tomorrow, and you have a boyfriend who absolutely adores you! What's there to be sad about?"

"Come on, Vanessa," Callie said quietly. "I know that you …and Joe… and Frank… all know something about this case that you're not telling me. I'd like to know what it is. I think I deserve to know if I'm in danger."

Suddenly, Vanessa's smile fell and she sighed. "Callie—I can't tell you. All I can tell you is that Frank is going nuts to make sure that you don't need to know what he found out…and that there's nothing he won't do to protect you."

Sitting up, Callie shook her head, her blonde hair flying around her pretty face. "That's just—stupid!" Callie declared in exasperation. "I'm not a little child. I don't need to be sheltered and protected. I'm a grown woman and I deserve to know what's going on!"

After a long pause, Vanessa shook her head. "I'm sorry, Callie. I…I can't."

"Whatever!" Callie yelled, and stood up, her eyes brimming with tears.

"Why are you so upset?" Vanessa asked, startled. She hadn't expected this strong of a reaction, although she could more than sympathize with Callie's predicament. Still, she agreed with Frank—Callie couldn't know.

"You know why?" Callie shouted back, tears spilling onto her cheeks. "Because I hate being lied to!" And then, suddenly, all of Callie's words came out in a torrent of emotions that she didn't know that she had been suppressing for so long. "And because no one trusts me to take care of myself!"

"That' not it!" Vanessa countered, but she was instantly silenced by Callie.

"And you know what else?" Callie continued, wringing her hands nervously. "I KNOW I'm being watched, and Frank and Joe can't even help me—in their own house! It doesn't make sense. And that's not all."

Suddenly quieted, Callie sank to the ground of Vanessa's bedroom and sputtered out her next words. "I feel like a failure because I let Frank down about this trip," she admitted with a shaky voice. "And tomorrow… tomorrow Frank expects to see me with my new necklace and bracelet. But I sold the bracelet, Van…" she said, looking up, "so that I could afford the watch for Frank. And… I'm so tired! I can't work any more, but I don't want to ask for help, you know?"

Listening to Callie, Vanessa was shocked. "Wow," was all she could manage. "I had no idea! You sold the bracelet for the watch?!"

"Yeah," Callie responded, weakly.

"How _Gift of the Magi-_ ish," Vanessa commented, eliciting a small smile from Callie.

"Well, I do know one thing for sure," Callie said, shakily standing up.

"What's that?" Vanessa inquired.

"If no one will solve this case, then I will! At least it will give me something to focus on!" And with that, Callie turned and left the room, leaving Vanessa staring after her, mouth-open.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

That evening Vanessa sat at the Hardy home, watching Frank pace nervously back and forth.

"Frank! Stop!" she and Joe said simultaneously, before linking fingers and saying, "Jinx!"

"It's not funny," Frank growled. "I should have told her. I mean… it was stupid not to. Who knows where she is now?"

"I'm sure she's fine," Joe reassured his brother.

"You know, all of this aggravation was so unnecessary," Frank sighed. "I should have done more about the messages so she wouldn't be so worried!" he added in frustration.

"You can only do so much," Joe said consolingly.

"But I need her here tonight!" Frank responded. "Tonight—you know as well as I do…."

"I know," Vanessa replied. "AND I KNOW Callie. She'll get here."

"But..." Frank began.

"No 'But's'," Vanessa interjected.

"Maybe she WILL solve the case," Joe said. "She's bright."

"Maybe," Frank responded dejectedly. "If anything happens to her …"

"Nothing will happen," Joe replied.

As if on cue, there was a knocking at the front door. Running to answer it, Frank threw open the door and was almost weak with relief when he saw Callie. Scooping her into his arms, he held her tightly for a moment before letting her go. "Where have you BEEN?" he asked, more out of worry than anger.

Pulling back from him, Callie breathed deeply. "Solving the case," she responded.

"What?!" Frank asked, stunned.

Reaching for his hand, Callie led Frank into the living room, where she was immediately greeted by Joe and Vanessa, who also looked surprised to see her.

"What's up?" Joe asked, trying to be light-hearted, but greatly relieved at Callie's presence.

Walking into the center of the room, she motioned for everyone to come around her. "I don't know what you've been hiding from me, and I don't even know that it's important," Callie said evenly. However, the flush in her cheeks and the sparkle in her eyes betrayed her excitement. "BUT… even though I'm not sure why these messages were delivered to me, I think I've solved the case- and it's very important."

Joe cast a dubious look at her. "Okay- shoot,' he said.

"Look at the clues," Callie answered, and whipped out the notepad again.

 _Two hands clasping or gripped together. Says "Two hands."_

 _A picture of a helicopter- says "Over Air."_

 _Magazine cutout- a lot of people. Words- "Many possibilities."_

 _Pictures of dollar bills- ominous warning—"You'll pay."_

 _Several stones. Rocks. Says "Over Years."_

 _Pictures of stars together with odd message: "Next nights."_

 _"Enthralling events." Some picture of a brochure… name undisclosed._

 _Picture. Girl terrified? Message states "Anxiously waiting." Ominous._

 _"New yelling." Picture of a microphone._

 _A picture of a novel. Says "Great Expectations."_

 **NEW**

 _A picture of a fire. Says "Explosions- air."_

 _Finally, a path of some sort. Says, "Long runway."_

"I totally don't get it," Vanessa replied.

"Don't you see?" Callie said excitedly, looking up.

"No," Joe said, point blank.

"All the clues!" Callie said in exasperation. " I think someone is trying to get YOUR attention through me. Tomorrow night!"

"What about it?" asked Vanessa.

Taking a moment to look up, Callie asserted dramatically and certainly, "There's going to be a big explosion at the Bayport Air Force Base New Year's Gala—and we have to stop it before it happens!"


	8. Chapter 8

**Note:** _This is a pretty short chapter! The conclusion is next. Thank you to those of you who were so kind to have left reviews on Chapter 7: Frankenstein's Bride, hbndgirl, ErinJordan, EvergreenDreamweaver, and max2013. I appreciate it!_

 **Fly Away**

 **Chapter 8**

"Are you out of your mind?!" Joe asked. "How on Earth do you get that?"

"Wait, Joe. Maybe she's onto something," Frank cut in, ignoring the shared look between Joe and Vanessa. Turning to Callie, he asked her, "How did you get that, hon?"

Ignoring the teasing from Joe and Vanessa, Callie said, loudly, "Why don't you all stop making fun of me and listen for a second?" With those words, Joe and Vanessa quieted down.

"Look," Callie said, and pointed to the note-pad.

 _Two hands clasping or gripped together. Says "Two hands."_

Callie began speaking. "The first clue could signify how people are afraid."

"Go on," Joe said, looking at her.

 _A picture of a helicopter- says "over air."_

"Okay," Callie continued. "The fireworks are happening over the air. Maybe the explosion will happen in a helicopter."

"Oh, now's there's an explosion," Joe cut in, but stopped when he saw the determined look on Callie's face. He admired people who took their ideas seriously.

 _Magazine cutout- a lot of people. Words- "Many possibilities."_

"Anyway, Callie interjected, referring to the third clue. "There will be a lot of people at the party and therefore, the possibilities for harm are endless."

"That's true," Frank agreed.

 _Pictures of dollar bills- ominous warning—"You'll pay."_

"The next clue suggests revenge of some sort, perhaps based on blackmail, as signified by the dollar bills."

By now, even Vanessa was becoming excited. "Okay!" she chimed in.

" _Several stones. Rocks. Says "Over Years."_

"Well, this next clue could mean that the revenge has been building, over the years, and you also could apply it to New Year's, right?"

Frank suppressed a smile, impressed, though, at Callie's reasoning. "Mmm Hmmm…" he intoned.

 _"Pictures of stars together with odd message: "Next nights."_

"The next clue, it could mean that in the next nights- like by tomorrow-there would be trouble!"

Joe nodded, not fully believing it, but following the train of thought.

" _Enthralling events." Some picture of a brochure… name undisclosed._

"The next clue is obvious," Callie went on. "What's a more enthralling event than New Years at this hot party in town? All the bigwigs will be there—politicians, musicians, you name it…"

Frank nodded as well. Callie was pretty amazing.

 _"Picture. Girl terrified? Message states "Anxiously waiting." Ominous._

Callie again pointed before speaking. "Again, guys-look! People are terrified. They're awaiting their doom!"

She continued before anyone could say anything to oppose her theory.

"New yelling." _Picture of a microphone."_ See? The next one shows people screaming!" Callie gestured at the notepad eagerly.

" _A picture of a novel. Says "Great Expectations."_

"And the expectation that this will go through is great!"

 _A picture of a fire. Says "Explosions- air."_ _Finally, a path of some sort. Says, "Long runway."_

"Come on, you guys!" Callie finally said, as she pointed to the last two clues. "Explosions in the air? A runway? I mean, the planes take off from there, and there is plenty of opportunity for a breach of security over the water and in the air. Don't you all see it?!"

"It DOES make sense, in a way," Frank said slowly, not sure of how much to say.

"Of course it does!" Callie agreed.

"But who'd want to tell us about it, and why through you?! And what does the word "ring" have to do with it? And why is there a bird? And who would want to announce that they're going to do this?" Joe asked.

Callie blushed. "I haven't figured it all out yet," she conceded.

Frank spoke up at once. "Well, I for one think it's a great theory," he said encouragingly. Turning to Joe, he said, "I think dad can pull a few strings and get us into that party after all, don't you?"

Joe nodded. "I think he might be able to do that," he agreed.

Vanessa clapped her hands in excitement. "You mean we can all go to the party?!" she asked.

"Whoa!" Frank said seriously. "If Callie is right, then this is a job for just Joe and me."

"No way, Jose," Callie cut in. "I've been worried about these threats directed at me, so if you all are going, I will, too."

"And there's no way I'm missing out on my New Year's celebration with my man," Vanessa chimed in.

"Well," Joe said, unable to suppress a smile, "I guess it's the Bayport Air Force Base Gala that we're going to after all!"

"Yay!" Vanessa said with a twirl.

"This is serious!" Callie said. "We have to prevent something bad from happening. This case has to come to an end!"

"It will," Frank promised. "Somehow I knew I could count on you to solve this case!"

Looking over her shoulder, Frank caught Joe's eye and smiled.


	9. Chapter 9

**Note:** _Well, this is it- the end to my lighthearted and somewhat far-fetched (at times a bit silly) story of yesteryear! Thanks so much for reading, following, and Favoriting it, and special thanks for those of you who were so kind to have left reviews throughout the posting. For reviews on Chapter 8, thank you to Evergreen Dreamweaver, Highflyer (so sorry I missed you on the last shout out), Leesa Jane, hbndgirl, Drumboy100, sm2003495, and Erin Jordan._

 _I still have nothing new written at this point, but I am always THINKING of starting something, if that counts! :) I am heavily debating finishing out the arc that ended with "Relative Fortune" (there is one major unresolved plot) OR starting something completely new, or maybe doing a few shorter stories. If anyone has any suggestions, feel free to PM me or leave it in a review. To be honest, I always start out a story asking questions, like "What would have happened if Iola lived?" or "What if Frank's logic failed and Joe's instinct failed?" I also LOVE character exploration; it's my favorite thing. I ask questions like "What made Biff and Joe such close friends?" or "How did Callie and Joe mend their relationship?" or even "So how did that whole Frank/Nancy/Callie thing go down?" These are the "big ideas" around which I center my stories, and what I am missing right now. I can definitely create complex plots (they're fun for me), but I care more about the relationships and what ifs. If anyone has some ideas for me, feel free to let me know, because once I have 1-3 really good, character driven subplots... then I can write a story!_

 _Thanks in advance! Happiest of new years to you all!_

 _-Cheryl_

 **Fly Away**

 **Chapter 9**

 **December 31st**

The next night, the two couples arrived at the Gala in grand style. Joe and Frank made it a point to reassure Callie that his father had made security aware of the potential threat against the Base.

Once inside, the Gala was even more grand than he'd expected. Joe had been taken by the limousine that had picked them all up, and by Vanessa's beauty, and it all came together for him once they were inside. He truly felt as though he were living in some sort of fantasyland. All around him, he recognized the rich and famous people whom he'd so long admired. He watched as Vanessa stared incredulously at her surroundings.

Deciding to take advantage of the moment, he whispered to her, "You look beautiful."

Turning to him with a smile, Vanessa winked. "You don't look half bad yourself." Actually, that was quite the understatement. In his new tuxedo, Joe looked absolutely dashing. His eyes twinkled with happiness, and he really looked like a prince.

"You know, you two," Callie cautioned them, "Something serious may be going on here tonight. You should stop fooling around. We're on a case, you know."

"MMM…" Joe mumbled, and smiled at her. "Somehow, Cal, I think it'll be all right," he added, and bent down to give her a kiss on the cheek. Taking Vanessa's hand, he gave a last quick smile to Callie before disappearing into the crowd.

Shaking her head, Callie turned to Frank. "You know, I don't understand your brother sometimes! Normally, isn't he the one who's all uptight about business, especially when he's on the job?" she asked.

Slipping his arms around her waist, Frank pulled her close to him. "All work and no play is no fun!" he said to her. He remained captivated by Callie, who looked stunning and absolutely radiant, seemingly without effort.

Blushing, Callie pulled back from him and bit her lip. "Frank?" she asked, hesitantly.

Raising his eyebrows, he smiled at her. "Yes?"

"Do you think my idea was stupid? I mean, the clues all seemed to make sense."

"No," Frank said. "Your ideas were perfectly fine. I just don't think there's going to be an explosion, that's all."

"Oh," Callie said, embarrassed.

"But," he said, reaching for her hand, "somehow I thought you would come to that conclusion, and we'd wind up here."

Puzzled, Callie looked up at him. "I don't get it."

"I know," he said, and then added, "Would you like to dance?"

Despite her puzzlement, Callie nodded, and allowed herself to be whisked onto the dance floor. As she felt Frank's arms around her, she closed her eyes and rested her head on his chest as they danced slowly to the wonderful music. Callie began to relax for a bit, somehow feeling protected in Frank's arms. Still, there were many things that weren't sitting right with her. Why was Frank so calm? What did he mean by his last comment that he thought she would come to that conclusion? Why didn't Joe and Vanessa seem worried about a terrorist threat? What had they all not been telling her?

Then, slowly, Callie began to realize she didn't care. In due time, she knew, all would be revealed. For now, she was going to allow herself to enjoy a bit of the holiday season and the beginning of a new year which, she desperately hoped, would bring better fortune than the last one had. Nestling next to Frank, she was at once grateful for what she DID have—friends, family, health, safety, and a best friend whom she really, truly loved…and that was much more than most people had.

With about twenty minutes to go until midnight, there had been no explosion. Frank and Joe had been correct. Quietly, Frank whispered to her, "Come outside for a second, okay?"

Looking at him inquisitively, she nodded quietly as they stepped onto the quiet balcony. Frank took off his jacket and placed it around her shoulders as they sat on a stone bench and watched the still waters of the bay being prepared to be lit from overhead with fireworks.

Frank kissed the top of her head. "I have something to confess," he said to her. "And I thought I might as well do it before midnight since you'll only have 20 minutes to be mad at me before the new year begins."

Callie was curious, but smiled at Frank anyway. "Go ahead, Hardy," she said.

"I brought something for you," he said, and took the note-pad of clues from his jacket pocket.

"Thanks," Callie said wryly. "Another reminder of my inability to be a detective."

"No," Frank said to her. "Exactly the opposite. I knew you'd figure out the clues the way you did."

Callie stared at him a moment. "What exactly are you saying?" she asked.

"I kind of set you up," Frank said quietly.

"What?!" Callie cried.

Frank took her hand. "Listen to me. Please. I think you'll understand."

"This better be good," Callie muttered, confused and hurt.

Frank gently touched her face. "Callie… I knew about the trouble you were having with your scholarships before you told me. I happen to have been speaking with your dad and he told me what was going on. Apparently, the financial aid office had called and left several messages at your house, which your parents had checked on the answering machine."

"Oh," Callie said, unsure of where this was going.

"I wanted to do something special to cheer you up, to make this holiday really special. I sort of figured you'd have to cancel our trip."

Callie blushed, and looked down.

"To make a long story short, I wanted to try and be creative, since I knew you liked solving mysteries. So—well, I guess I thought I'd put you at the center of it!"

Callie gasped. "You…YOU sent me the messages?!" She pulled away from him, shocked and horrified.

Despite the seriousness of the situation, Frank smiled. He couldn't help it. "Of course I did, Cal! I mean, come on. Didn't you notice that I was the one who found the messages?! I never looked for fingerprints?! Somehow, the 'thief' didn't break into the van, but the messages were there?! And at your house, all I had to do was rig the lights to go off at a certain time. Why do you think I couldn't explain the whole circuit breaker thing? I just made that up! AND," he added, "Come on, Cal. If I honestly and truly thought someone would hurt you, do you think for a second I'd act like I didn't care about the case, or would take my time on it?"

Tears of humiliation rose in Callie's eyes. "But.. why?!" She asked, wiped back the tears. "You scared me half to death! Did.. did Joe know?! And Vanessa?!" The realization hit her like a ton of bricks, and she stood up, leaning against the railing.

Instantly, Frank felt bad, and stood next to her, turning to her to wipe back her tears. "Don't cry, honey," he said, knowing he had to explain himself better. "Yes, they knew…but not until well over halfway through this. They were worried about you, and they wanted me to get off my butt and help you to solve the 'mystery.' I had no choice but to tell them."

Callie looked away, feelings of betrayal and humiliation threatening to overwhelm her.

"Callie…" Frank said gently. "Look at the clues." He held out the note-pad.

Still bewildered, Callie looked down.

"No," she whispered.

"Yes," Frank said back to her.

Finally she looked down.

1) _Two hands clasping or gripped together. Says "Two hands."_

 _2) A picture of a helicopter- says "over air."_

 _3) Magazine cutout- a lot of people. Words- "Many possibilities."_

 _4) Pictures of dollar bills- ominous warning—"You'll pay."_

 _5) Several stones. Rocks. Says "Over Years."_

 _6) Pictures of stars together with odd message: "Next nights."_

 _7)"Enthralling events." Some picture of a brochure… name undisclosed._

 _8) Picture. Girl terrified? Message states "Anxiously waiting." Ominous._

 _9)"New yelling." Picture of a microphone._

 _10) A picture of a novel. Says "Great Expectations."_

 _11) A picture of a fire. Says "Explosions- air."_

 _12)Finally, a path of some sort. Says, "Long runway."_

"I don't understand, Frank,' she said simply. Looking into his eyes, she said, quietly, "Just be direct."

"Okay," Frank said with a smile. Turning her around to the bay, he wrapped his arms around her from behind.

"Frank, I…"

"Shhhh…" he quieted her. "First," he whispered in her ear, "Your parents called the other night. They're inside. They're waiting for you. They wanted to be with you for the New Year, so they flew home early. I've been talking with your dad."

Callie tried to turn around, but Frank's hold wouldn't let her. "Okay," she whispered. "But why?"

"Because I asked him to."

Callie nodded.

"Second," he said to her, and he gently turned her to face him, "I thought you may have lost this." With that, he reached into his pocket and pulled out Callie's bracelet—the one she had turned into the pawn shop!

"But—how?" she stammered. "I…I didn't think you realized…" Words failed her.

"Callie, of COURSE I realized that you didn't have your bracelet. Vanessa told me what happened, and I got it back. Now you finally have your matching set! Don't go getting rid of it anymore, okay?" he added with a twinkle in his dark eyes. He placed the bracelet on her wrist and smiled. Her head was spinning.

"Now look at the clues again." Frank held out he pad, but again, Callie saw nothing different.

Frank laughed. "Come on, Cal!" I knew you'd figure out that I wanted you to come here. It was the only way that I could sneak you here in style! The clues can also mean something different."

"What?" Callie whispered.

"Look at the words."

Callie did so.

1)"Two hands."

2) "over air."

3) "Many possibilities."

4) "You'll pay."

5) "Over Years."

6) "Next nights."

7) "Enthralling events."

8) "Anxiously waiting."

9) "New yelling."

10)"Great Expectations."

11) "Explosions- air."

12)"Long runway."

Finally, Frank couldn't take it anymore. "Shaw!" he said, happy but exasperated. "You're right! Let Joe and I be the detectives!" he teased. "I'm taking you on the vacation we always promised. You don't have to pay for a thing."

"Huh?!" Callie asked.

"Look!" He pointed to the pictures and the words. "We always said we'd go to Hawaii, right? Well, we are! I'm "holding your hand." We'll take helicopter rides. There are many possibilities, right?! You'll pay me back with your company, to celebrate the years we've been together!"

Callie felt her eyes well with tears.

"There's more," Frank said, suddenly serious. "Go back to the clues. The next few nights are anxious for me. They could be filled with enthralling events. I'm ignoring the yelling inside and waiting for the explosions in the air. Before we can take the long runway of life, I am anxiously awaiting your response."

"To.. to what?" Callie whispered.

"Read the clues." Frank said. "Take the first letter of each word vertically down."

Then, Callie saw it.

1)" **T** wo Hands."

2) " **O** ver air."

3) " **M** any possibilities."

4) " **Y** ou'll pay."

5) " **O** ver Years."

6) " **N** ext nights."

7) " **E** nthralling events."

8) " **A** nxiously waiting."

9) " **N** ew yelling."

10)" **G** reat Expectations."

11) " **E** xplosions- air."

12)" **L** ong runway."

Gasping, she said shakily, "To My One Angel"

She looked in amazement at Frank. Inside she heard cheering as the clock began to strike midnight. It all made sense. The bell, the "ring", the bird, the clues….

Shocked, she turned and gasped as she saw Frank on one knee. "Callie, my one true angel, the bell tolls for a new year. As it rings, will you take this ring and marry me? Say we can fly away together. I love you."

Tears sin her eyes, Callie nodded as Frank placed the ring on her finger.

He stood up at once.

"Hey Cal?" Frank whispered, holding her close as the music played in the background.

"Yes?" She whispered shakily, deliriously happy.

"Hear that ringing from inside? They say every time a bell rings, an angel gets its wings."

Smiling, Callie nodded, realizing that it was, indeed, a wonderful life.


End file.
